Types of waste

Generally, waste could be liquid or solid waste. Both of them could be hazardous. Liquid
and solid waste types can also be grouped into organic, re-usable and recyclable waste.
Let us see some details below:

Liquid type:
Waste can come in non-solid form. Some solid waste can also be converted to a liquid
waste form for disposal. It includes point source and non-point source discharges such
as storm water and wastewater. Examples of liquid waste include wash water from
homes, liquids used for cleaning in industries and waste detergents.

Solid type:
Solid waste predominantly, is any garbage, refuse or rubbish that we make in our
homes and other places. These include old car tires, old newspapers, broken furniture
and even food waste. They may include any waste that is non-liquid.

Hazardous type:
Hazardous or harmful waste are those that potentially threaten public health or the
environment. Such waste could be inflammable (can easily catch fire), reactive (can
easily explode), corrosive (can easily eat through metal) or toxic (poisonous to
human and animals). In many countries, it is required by law to involve the appropriate
authority to supervise the disposal of such hazardous waste. Examples include fire
extinguishers, old propane tanks, pesticides, mercury-containing equipment (e.g,
thermostats) and lamps (e.g. fluorescent bulbs) and batteries.
(More on hazardous waste here)

Organic type:

Organic waste comes from plants or animals sources. Commonly, they include food
waste, fruit and vegetable peels, flower trimmings and even dog poop can be classified
as organic waste. They are biodegradable (this means they are easily broken down by
other organisms over time and turned into manure). Many people turn their organic
waste into compost and use them in their gardens.

Recyclable type:
Recycling is processing used materials (waste) into new, useful products. This is done
to reduce the use of raw materials that would have been used. Waste that can be
potentially recycled is termed "Recyclable waste". Aluminum products (like soda, milk
and tomato cans), Plastics (grocery shopping bags, plastic bottles), Glass products (like
wine and beer bottles, broken glass), Paper products (used envelopes, newspapers and
magazines, cardboard boxes) can be recycled and fall into this category.

Sources of waste
Municipal sources of waste:
This includes trash or garbage from households, schools, offices, market places,
restaurants and other public places.

They include everyday items like food debris, used plastic bags, soda cans and plastic
water bottles, broken furniture, grass clippings, product packaging, broken home
appliances and clothing.

Medical/Clinical sources of waste:

Medical/clinical waste, normally refers to waste produced from health care facilities,
such as hospitals, clinics, surgical theaters, veterinary hospitals and labs. They tend to
be classified as hazard waste rather than general waste.

Items in this group include surgical items, pharmaceuticals, blood, body parts, wound
dressing materials, needles and syringes
 Agricultural sources of waste:
Typically, this is waste generated by agricultural activities. These include horticulture,
fruit growing, seed growing, livestock breeding, market gardens and seedling nurseries.

Waste items in this group include empty pesticide containers, old silage wrap, out of
date medicines and wormers, used tires, surplus milk, cocoa pods and corn husks.

End-of-life Automobiles:

When cars are all old and not working again, where do they end up? Many people just
leave them to rust in the fields, but there is a better way to deal with them. In many
cities, these vehicles are sent to the plant, where all the removable parts are taken out
for recycling. The rest is flattened up and shredded into peices for recycling. The last
bits that cannot be used again is sent to a landfill.

Industrial sources of waste:

Since the industrial revolution, the rise in the number of industries manufacturing glass,
leather, textile, food, electronics, plastic and metal products has significantly
contributed to waste production. Take a look at the things in your home, every item
there was probably manufactured and possibly, waste was produced as a result.

Construction/demolition sources of waste:

Construction waste is that resulting from the construction of roads and building.
Sometimes old buildings and structures are pulled down (demolished) to make space
for new ones. This is particularly common in old cities that are modernizing. This is
called demolition waste.

Waste items include concrete debris, wood, earth, huge package boxes and plastics
from the building materials and the like.
 Electronic sources of waste:
This is waste from electronic and electrical devices. Think of DVD and music players,
TV, Telephones, computers, vacuum cleaners and all the other electrical stuff in your
home. These are also called e-waste, e-scrap, or waste electrical and electronic
equipment (WEEE)
Some e-waste (like TV) contains lead, mercury, cadmium, and brominated flame
retardants. These are harmful to humans and the environment. It is therefore
important that the right authorities ensure the proper disposal of such waste.

Effects of poor waste disposal.

Imagine we all throw garbage, junk and rubbish away anyhow. Imagine there was no
authority to supervise waste management activities from all the sources mentioned
earlier. Imagine we all just sent our rubbish to the landfill, or just dumped them in a
nearby river. What do you think will happen? A disaster!

Environmental Effects

Surface water contamination:

Waste that end up in water bodies negatively change the chemical composition of the
water. Technically, this is called water pollution. This will affect all ecosystems existing
in the water. It can also cause harm to animals that drink from such polluted water.

Soil contamination:
Hazardous chemicals that get into the soil (contaminants) can harm plants when they
take up the contamination through their roots. If humans eat plants and animals that
have been in contact with such polluted soils, there can be negative impact on their
health.

Pollution:
Bad waste management practices can result in land and air pollution and can cause
respiratory problems and other adverse health effects as contaminants are absorbed
from the lungs into other parts of the body. (Pollution is fully covered here)

Leachate
Liquid that forms as water trickles through contaminated areas is called Leachate. It
forms very harmful mixture of chemicals that may result in hazardous substances
entering surface water, groundwater or soil.

Economic Effects
 Municipal wellbeing:
Everyone wants to live and visit places that are clean, fresh and healthy. A city with
poor sanitation, smelly and with waste matter all over the place do not attract good
people, investors and tourists. Such cities tend to have poor living standards.

Recycling revenue:
Cities that do not invest in recycling and proper waste control miss out on revenue from
recycling. They also miss out on job opportunities that come from recycling, composting
and businesses that work with them.

Efficient and effective waste management is best achieved at household levels.

If every person gets involved, we can have a powerful effect on the our environment in
a positive way.

Many times, people want to do the right things but they feel they are alone, and their
actions will not make any difference — YES IT WILL!!

There are millions of great teens like you who appreciate the magnitude of the waste
problem and are doing the right things to help. But we can do more and get others who
are not doing well to do better.

Here is what you can do:

Reduce creating waste

The next time you change the waste-bin bag, take a look inside it. Is there anything
that could have not ended up there? Probably. Try cutting the waste you produce at
home into half. For example,

Use proper towels and ceramic plates at home instead of paper towels, disposable
spoons and paper plates.
 Get your own shopping bag instead of bringing home
plastic bags each time you go grocery shopping.
Use old post package boxes to send parcels instead of
buying new ones. More on waste reduction

Re-use things that end up as waste

There are things that can be used over and over again:
package boxes, gift wrappers, clothing, furniture and
even playing toys. If even you have outgrown them, you
can give it out to someone who has a need for it. Do not
be too quick to throw them away.

You can also consider sorting out the waste for recycling
and composting. These are covered in detail
here: Recycle | Composting

Lead or join an environmental society

Some people live in communities that have no littler collection and waste collection
programmes. This is a good time to start or join a society that can push for this kind of
service.

Environmental impacts
Disposing of waste has huge environmental impacts and can cause serious
problems. In the UK much is buried in landfill sites – holes in the ground,
sometimes old quarries, sometimes specially dug. Some waste will eventually
rot, but not all, and in the process it may smell, or generate methane gas,
which is explosive and contributes to the greenhouse effect. Leachate
produced as waste decomposes may cause pollution. Badly-managed landfill
sites may attract vermin or cause litter.

Incinerating waste also causes problems, because plastics tend to produce

toxic substances, such as dioxins, when they are burnt. Gases from
incineration may cause air pollution and contribute to acid rain, while the ash
from incinerators may contain heavy metals and other toxins. Because of
these problems there are active campaigns against waste incineration.
Greenpeace actively worked on these issues and some information, including
a map of UK waste incinerators, can be found by searching
the Greenpeace website for waste incineration. However, burning waste can
generate energy and there are operational schemes. The Renewable Energy
Association website provides more information including a map of biomass
and energy from waste projects.

Throwing away things wastes resources. It wastes the raw materials and
energy used in making the items and it wastes money. Reducing
waste means less environmental impact, less resources and energy used and
saves money.